Conflicting iDrive Messages

Irish_Tom

Irish_Tom

Irish_Tom

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18 Oct 2002
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Lo all,

This morning I was pulling out of my driveway, stopped for a bus and then iDrive popped up with a 'replace brake pads' message. It didn't say which pads specifically, it just said 'replace brake pads'.

I went into the service status menu within iDrive and it say that both front and back pads are 'Green - OK'. (17k and 23k miles before replacing respectively front/back).

Are the two systems independent? It seems a bit odd that one thing says everything is fine but on the other hand there's a warning light on the dash.

The brakes don't feel any different and the car still stops without any trouble. There's no feedback or judder under braking. The only thing I have noticed recently is squealing at low speeds. I've read that this can be due to the sensor rubbing on the disc so maybe that what's been happening and it's now killed the sensor.

The car has just ticked over 60k miles and it's due it's annual service next month but I don't want to pay to replace discs and pads unnecessarily.

Anyone experienced anything similar?
 
probably worn down to the point where the metal sensor grounded on the disc, still plenty of meat left of on them but should be on your horizon of things to do

thats my guess anyway
 
Cheers for the fast reply Will, that's more or less what I thought.

I guess I should factor in the cost of front discs and pads during the service then. (squeal is coming from the front).

Anyone got any ideas what I should expect to pay for the above on a E60 530d from a BMW dealer, along with the oil change and service? I've got £500 put aside – hopefully that will cover it.
 
I could be wildly wrong about the pads but every car I've had that has chirped up about needing pads has always had plenty of meat left and the sensor wire has been placed generously deep in the pad (if that makes sense!)

Fox will know on the costing and probably on the idrive reading too, I hear he has a CEL reader interface in his left ear
 
[TW]Fox;17249548 said:
£300 for the discs/pads, £200ish for the oil service.
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see he ignored my CEL reader comment, apparently it invalidates beemer warrantys and at meets fox secretly plugs himself into all the 3 series and changes the welcome messge to "lol you dont own a 530i, lol"
 
Cheers guys that's what I expected.

Seems a bit of a rip-off that you have to replace the brakes when there's still so much life left in them because the sensor that tells you how much life is left in them doesn't last as long as the brakes themselves. :rolleyes:
 
its probably all one big scam, ferodo (or whoever) will chuck BMW some cash to tell you your pads are dead long before they need to be, the revenue train keeps rolling rolling rolling!
 
Panzerbjorn said:
Cheers guys that's what I expected.

Seems a bit of a rip-off that you have to replace the brakes when there's still so much life left in them because the sensor that tells you how much life is left in them doesn't last as long as the brakes themselves. :rolleyes:
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Well no, if its down to the wear sensor there is nothing like 20k left despite what it says.
 
[TW]Fox;17249703 said:
Well no, if its down to the wear sensor there is nothing like 20k left despite what it says.
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Good point. In which case, it's stupid that the wear sensor can still read >15k+ miles left when it's touching the disc. :rolleyes: :p

roughlad said:
and you may not need to change your disc's.
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I always done both at the same time. What's the general consensus on this?
 
Panzerbjorn said:
Good point. In which case, it's stupid that the wear sensor can still read >15k+ miles left when it's touching the disc. :rolleyes: :p



I always done both at the same time. What's the general consensus on this?
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Brake discs last at least twice as long as pads, waste of money if you are doing both at once
 
[TW]Fox;17249703 said:
Well no, if its down to the wear sensor there is nothing like 20k left despite what it says.
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While i am yet to experience the sensors wearing with quite that much left to go, one of my 330's told me it needed new pads. Upon replacement although the sensor had worn through, there was tons and tons of life left. My Merc is almost as bad, too.

It is a bit of a scam. I like to think that it warns you early to cater for lazy dimwits though who wont replace the pads for ages, rather than for any more sinister reason.
 
Panzerbjorn said:
I always done both at the same time. What's the general consensus on this?
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Its the best way to keep your brakes 100%!

New pads & discs is always good.

Some may find it excessive, tbh, I don't do it myself. if money were no object, I would.
 
MrLOL said:
I've managed to make my discs last for 2 sets of pads, so new set of pads, set of discs + pads, set of pads etc...
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Depends totally how you drive. I have only recently replaced the original discs on my S-Class, at around 145,000 miles i think it was. This relates to 4 sets of pads throughout its history. They last forever if you drive carefully and dont use them heavily.
 
MrLOL said:
I've managed to make my discs last for 2 sets of pads, so new set of pads, set of discs + pads, set of pads etc...
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This is what my local BMW main dealer suggested too. I paid about £330 for discs and pads for a 525d from a main dealer, this included their 4+ discount and a bit of haggling.
 
DannyDan said:
This is what my local BMW main dealer suggested too. I paid about £330 for discs and pads for a 525d from a main dealer, this included their 4+ discount and a bit of haggling.
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That seems a bit expensive even without any discount. Discs and pads are £299 for the 530d and you only need to do the discs roughly every second set of pads. Discs are replaced purely on condition and minimum thickness.
 
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